


bye my first...

by bystander



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Canon Compliant, M/M, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-17
Updated: 2020-02-17
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:42:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22764187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bystander/pseuds/bystander
Summary: people have parts they show, and parts they don't. sometimes doyoung feels unknowable, but there are parts of him that donghyuck feels are tangible: his lame sense of humor. his proper personality. how he is quick to emotion. how he brings back sweets donghyuck likes when he visits a bakery. how he takes care of those he cares about. his kindness and maturity. his angelic voice.how he earns the adoration he’s given.
Relationships: Kim Dongyoung | Doyoung/Lee Donghyuck | Haechan
Comments: 11
Kudos: 111





	bye my first...

it’s logical to have favorites. in an ideal world, all members would get along equally. in actuality, in a group as large as 21, cliques were bound to form. some relationships that went deeper than the rest. donghyuck doesn’t mind this—he’s made his special little niche as the moodmaker of dream, the troublemaker maknae of 127, mark’s best friend.

closer relationships took shape naturally. donghyuck hadn't anticipated getting as close to renjun as he has, or latch on to taeil so intensely, but life has a funny way of bringing people together. even more so when you were on tour for months at a time, with comebacks, shared meals, dance practice, dates after work. 

“doyoungie-hyung,” says donghyuck. he’d waited until all the members had filed out of the practice room, grumbling about sore limbs after their grueling six-hour practice on top of a morning photoshoot. doyoung always takes the longest because he spends too much time cleaning up and rearranging the contents of his bag. donghyuck had shut the door after everyone else had left. “do you want to get dinner?”

doyoung huffs. “at 1 am?” he runs his hand through sweat-slick hair. his bangs hang floppy in his eyes, and he looks a lot softer when it’s not styled to show his forehead. “why not. who else is coming?”

donghyuck keeps his eyes wide and innocent. “just you, hyung. everyone else is exhausted.”

doyoung suddenly looks fearful. “what is it,” he asks warily. “is this because i accidentally used your toothpaste? i told you it was an accident, haechan-ah. i bought you a new one.”

donghyuck would be insulted, but he’s self-aware enough to know doyoung has reason to fear. he’d already gotten revenge for the toothpaste, but doyoung would find out when he had to.

“what,” donghyuck says. he pouts, deliberately pitches his voice to aegyo, and croons, “i can’t go out with my hyung without an ulterior motive? you’re breaking my heart.” 

doyoung squints, though donghyuck can tell he’s feeling guilty by the way his mouth pinches at the corners. doyoung, as he always does, relents.

they don’t go far. there’s a ramen place a block down from the company they usually go to for late-night runs, and it suits them tonight just fine. the walk is quiet; they’re both exhausted from the day’s schedule. doyoung has gotten comfortable, though. he hums, darts his still-sharp eyes over the street they all know by heart, gaze lingering now and then on the sky above them. 

the sidewalk is narrow. their elbows bump every now and then, and when a car speeds by doyoung naturally slips his arm around donghyuck’s waist to pull him in. donghyuck had chosen to walk on the side closer to the street to look at the weeds that sprung up on the cracks there. doyoung had complied, but his protective instinct still acts up at times like this. it comes so easy to him. donghyuck hides a smile under his hands.

when they arrive, they get their usual orders and sit at a booth in the back. this late, there’s no need to hide their identity; customers are scarce and the owners greet them by name. 

they get their orders in no time at all. donghyuck talks about his thoughts on their new comeback: his new hairstyle, how he feels about the title song, vocal parts he’s working on finding the right flair for. doyoung shares how gongmyung-hyung is doing, his schtick on law of the jungle. it’s all topics they are familiar with but haven’t gotten to discuss in any sort of detail. or, at least not with each other. donghyuck doesn’t laugh loudly, but he doesn’t stop grinning the whole time, and doyoung lets his bunny smile show when he’s particularly amused.

doyoung blinks. “haechan-ah,” he says. his eyes twinkle under the muted yellow lighting, steam slightly distorting his face. “that’s right. you’re an adult now.” doyoung puts his chin in his hands, consideringly, before brightening. he asks: “shall we have a drink?”

so doyoung orders some drinks, pours donghyuck a shot, then another one, and another one, they leave slightly tipsy. the heat from their flushed faces keep them warm in the night chill.

the moon is unusually bright, almost violent in her radiance. she doesn't have her own light, only refracting from the sun, but she's gorgeous in her own right.

“hey,” says doyoung, nudging donghyuck in his side. “you hold your drink pretty well, don’t you?”

donghyuck huffs. “hyung,” he whines. “doyoungie-hyung, i’m an adult now, of course i can drink?”

doyoung gets a look of wonder on his face. he pats donghyuck on the back, clearly thinking hard. “well,” he says. “well. i suppose you are.” 

they lean into each other comfortably, and doyoung doesn’t protest when donghyuck grabs his hand and burrows into him. maybe it’s because doyoung hasn’t indulged his company in a while, but donghyuck feels like he could take the whole sky to put in his pocket.

donghyuck considers it a good night. when they’re back on the sm campus, donghyuck is clinging to doyoung’s arms. he pulls towards the 127 dorms, but doyoung carefully steers them in another direction. not far, maybe a two-minute detour. donghyuck doesn't question it, counts the lines in the sections of concrete they pass.

“why'd you really take me out, haechan-ah?” doyoung asks. they’re back in the company, but there’s a little sectioned off building. doyoung produces a key, and unlocks the door.

through the building, and out the door, there is a hidden garden area. donghyuck blinks.

“i told you,” says donghyuck. “i wanted to spend time with my hyung.”

doyoung smiles with his bunny teeth, gums peeking out behind his lips. he hesitates, then rumples his hand through donghyuck’s hair, rough, like he hasn’t done since firetruck era. donghyuck preens, and doyoung laughs and massages the back of donghyuck’s neck with callused fingers.

doyoung leads them to a bench, flicks the lantern hanging over it on. it exposes his face in one bright flash. “sure,” says doyoung. “come sit with me.”

doyoung motions for donghyuck to sit down next to him. he offers donghhyuck an airpod. donghyuck takes it. 

“i get that jeno is your favorite,” says donghyuck, when some ten songs pass. it’s all their old songs: fool, walk you home, back 2 u, baby don’t like it. they don’t usually listen to their discography on their own time, because it’s always played when they go to schedules anyway. it's all past them now. donghyuck blinks, and is surprised to find his lashes sticky with tears. must be the goddamn alcohol. he blinks furiously, hoping doyoung doesn’t notice. “he listens well and he’s handsome and he doesn’t cause trouble for you. i love him, too.”

doyoung is looking at donghyuck intently. he doesn’t say anything. he takes donghyuck’s hands (doyoung? initiating skinship? donghyuck thinks, after all night, only now remembering to be surprised) and waits for donghyuck to finish.

donghyuck takes his time, just lets his fingers flex as he looks around in the garden. it’s pretty—he’s been with sm for years but he'd never known there was an entire flower patch behind the maintenance building. it’s strange, because the company would definitely have wanted to show it off to make the area prettier. 

donghyuck drinks in the sight. the white flowers, lined up in neat rows, glow prettily in the dark. there’s automatic lights planted in intervals around the plot. the air promises the tension of something starting, something new. donghyuck can feel how precious this moment is, lighting up every nerve in his brain. he takes a chance.

“we’ve been busy,” says donghyuck, changing the subject. “so much is changing. i’m graduating from dream. i became an adult. mark-hyung’s always off with superm, now.” 

the instability of it all is grating. as the world shifts, donghyuck’s place in it does as well. people branch off to form their own place to belong, and sometimes they branch apart. doyoung’s been with him since he was a trainee and even brattier than he is now. it should be tethering. it seems like they’re always on the fringes with each other, now. taeil’s always willing to humor him where doyoung pushes back.

doyoung is still looking at him.

“i guess,” says donghyuck, “jeno can be your actual favorite. and you can say renjun is your favorite when he asks, if he’s joking.” he digs his feet into the dirt, the adidas sneakers he’d bought with the money he’d got for filming coming home. “but, you know, i was here first. and i’m actually in the same subunit as you,” he adds, and winces at how petty his words come out.

doyoung brings him in closer. he is a solid warm wall. donghyuck feels like his breathing stops.

“actually, no one else knows about this place,” says doyoung. donghyuck has his eyes half closed, his head on doyoung’s shoulder, can feel the rise and fall of his chest as he breathes. “i come here when i’m having a hard time.” he pauses, says, “you can—”

he breaks off, clearly hesitating. donghyuck waits.

doyoung doesn’t fail him. he always came through, whether you wanted him to or not. “you can come here, now, too,” says doyoung, more sure of himself. “when you want to relax some. i can come with you, if you want.” 

it’s an awkward olive branch. doyoung doesn’t promise anything he can’t keep, but the promise to stay is there. the distance between them decreases one mile, two miles. this little garden will stay between them. 

people have parts they show, and parts they don't. sometimes doyoung feels unknowable, but there are parts of him that donghyuck feels are tangible: his lame sense of humor. his proper personality. how he is quick to emotion. how he brings back sweets donghyuck likes when he visits a bakery. how he takes care of those he cares about. his kindness and maturity. his angelic voice.

how he earns the adoration he’s given.

doyoung looks like the idol he is in the moonlight, though he’s not wearing makeup and his eyes are smudged dark with exhaustion, in expensive practice clothes. god knows how many times he’d bleach fried his hair, but it still looks soft. donghyuck’s handsome hyung.

“okay,” says donghyuck. he leaves his head in the junction of doyoung’s shoulder, limbs latching onto doyoung bodily. he breathes in, smells ramen, outside air, their shared laundry detergent, doyoung’s unique smell. home. “i’ll take you up on that, hyung. carry me back to the dorms. treat me out next time, too.”

doyoung huffs a laugh, and lifts donghyuck up into his arms. doyoung stumbles, but catches himself. his hold is surprisingly steady, with how slender he is. doyoung cards his fingers through donghyuck’s hair. “anything for our precious maknae.”

donghyuck looks up. he searches doyoung’s eyes. they’re clear and warm.

donghyuck sighs, and settles in.

**Author's Note:**

> i know dohyuck is v rarepair, but listen. i would die for them...i heard donghyuck say "doyoungie-hyung" once and i'm never letting it go


End file.
